Liga MX Player of the Week: Gustavo Bou

Club Tijuana’s Gustavo Bou was named Liga Bancomer MX Player of the Week for Jornada 16 by a poll of Liga MX English-language writers and broadcasters.

“La Pantera” carried Xolos on his back and was involved in all of Tijuana’s goals in its 4-1 win over Monarcas Morelia, scoring twice, contributing an assist and drawing a penalty.

Morelia drew blood first, but Xolos were quick to react. Bou received the ball near Morelia’s box and passed it to Ariel Nahuelpan, with the ball eventually finding the Argentine again. His strike ricocheted off Mario Osuna and peculiarly went over the head of keeper Luis Malagon and into the net.

In the second half, Bou made his presence felt again just 10 minutes after coming out of the locker room. After a few Tijuana passes, Bou received the ball again from Jesus Angulo near the center. The former Racing striker brilliantly dribbled past both Aldo Rocha and Rodrigo Millar before launching a three-toed curler that found the top right of Malagon’s goal.

A few minutes later, Bou drew a penalty that teammate Miller Bolaños took and made it 3-1 to the Border Dogs.

Finally, Bou returned the favor to youngster Angulo after the Argentine’s through pass found the 22-year-old in the area, who then side-stepped Malagon and scored the final goal in the blowout.

Bou played like an absolute all-star in this matchup. His contributions included 21 accurate passes, two key passes, one big chance created, three successful dribbles, three tackles and winning eight out of his 10 duels. He received a perfect 10 match rating from SofaScore, a feat shared this season only by Pachuca’s Edwin Cardona for Jornada 14.

Bou’s performance has kept Tijuana in position to make the Liguilla. Oscar Pareja’s team is currently taking up the last playoff spot with 25 points. A showdown next weekend with Puebla will decide which team gets in La Fiesta Grande. A win or tie to Xolos would mean they go through.

For more information on Liga MX and to keep up with the Player of the Week poll, follow @FMFSoM on Twitter.